We were lucky to catch up with Carole Choucair Oueijan recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Carole thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the kindest thing anyone has ever done for you?

Lovely question! I like it when I have something to tell for the first time. It is so nice to feel appreciated by your community, organizations, clients, family, friends, and especially art lovers who approach you just for the art you do.
I always remember this story that happened to me a while back. I had a mosaic piece, “Dreamer”, in the Museum of Man (now called Museum of Us) in San Diego, showing with a group of mosaic artists Society of American Mosaic Artists (SAMA). The show was there for couple of months. Three months after its closing, I received an email from a lady asking about my artwork. She was so excited to reach me telling me that she spent several months looking for me. She really liked “Dreamer” and wanted to have her.
She told me that she was walking in Balboa Park with her groom on their wedding day, eloping, wearing her wedding dress and her husband in his tuxedo. It was only the both of them, and it happened that they went inside the museum to see the show. “She was looking at me wherever I went. I can’t forget her look. I feel like she’s telling me something. So beautiful! I want to have her at our new house.” I got excited, so she invited my husband and I to go to her house and deliver it and she hosted a special dinner on our honor. It was really far, just to mention, as we went inside the beautiful mountain in San Diego. At one point, no houses were there and only one street was going up. We were afraid to get lost, but soon we started finding signs on the side of the road saying: “Welcome Milad and Carole”, “Welcome Dreamer”, “We’re waiting for you” on both sides. It was a little strange but awesome at the same time! They continued until we reached the top of this mountain where the amazing couple warmly welcomed us. I had such a warm feeling meeting this couple who were very anxious to see my work.
The mosaic was wrapped. They asked me to open it myself and they started videotaping me. I then saw her tears coming. It was so emotional for her to finally have it. It was very touching. The dinner was delicious; her husband played on his guitar and we sang all night. The day after she emailed me telling me that they put a table and two chairs under the mosaic and had their breakfast there.
I can never forget that lovely adventure, these warm and passionate couple and the 360-degree views we had on top of this mountain. It was like we were flying. So glad to have my work in a such a good home.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I was born in Beirut, Lebanon, the daughter of two amazing parents who were very supportive of art in all its kinds. My dad was a priest and my mom was a banker. Both of them were so involved in Boys and Girls Scouts. Most of our outings and activities were outdoors, in nature surrounded with friends, music, crafts, art and fun times. I used to love to sing but then I decided that fine art is my forte.

I received my Technical Degree in Interior Design (BT Technique) from the YWCA Beirut, then got my
BFA from the Institut Nationale Des Beaux Arts-The Lebanese University of Fine Arts.
My dad encouraged me to go to Greece to learn the art of mosaic. In 1989, I flew to Athens, where my sister lives, and went to Likavitos, to study the Byzantine Mosaic Arts with artist Katia Kolefa.

In January of 1990, I moved to Los Angeles looking for a better life away from the civil war in Lebanon.
I had 3 children, but never stopped painting. It was my nighttime passion to create art while everyone at home was in bed.

When my kids got older, I started giving time to the community, started getting involved with organizations and started to participate in shows etc. Working with the mosaic medium, opened up new windows for me, other than private commissions, I started to win competitions for public arts. I like it a lot. There was so much to learn about the history and culture of many cities I worked for.

I use an ancient technique where I work in reverse and then I cast my mosaic with mortar to later flip it to the right side. This Byzantine indirect technique is the best for outdoor mosaics or any piece you wish to last forever. It is always a challenge to make commissions. You need to visualize what is in your clients mind and try to create something very similar to it. The hardest thing about it is that you can feel a bit restricted, and for an artist, we need all the freedom to be able to create wonders. I learned how to train myself to accept and improve all ideas for a successful project.

I created many projects that I’m very proud of, but I think the most for me, was the biggest mural I made, 23 x 12.5 feet; at the Nike headquarters in Oregon for LeBron James and his mother. I was so happy working on this project as I had all the freedom creating it. I used all kind of glass, had bas-relief elements and had all the space to do portraits and play with abstract designs. “Our Bonds”, LeBron James Innovation Center, OR.

Also the last 2 years I have been fortunate to work on mosaic iconography and that was a chance for me to remember my first years of my mosaic training. I feel very blessed to have been working with amazing clients since I started.

In 2014, and after giving some private lessons of my technique, I decided to travel and visit studios all over the globe. Social media helped a lot with this adventure. For 6 years I traveled the world educating fellow mosaic artists who started to follow my classes to different countries. I loved that journey and loved the people I met and new friends I gained.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I think each project I have done has at some point brought up difficulties that I have needed to overcome to make it successful. I always like to try new things, technical-wise and that sometimes gives me a hard time but the joy will come afterwards, when I see myself make it happen. Having this challenge is very important; it is part of the fun.

Thinking about it more, I will say when I won the big Nike project and had to have people working with me was a big challenge. I worked by myself for years and I felt that I couldn’t work with the presence of others.

I ended up hiring 5 artists to help me finish the job on time. Organizing, preparing schedules, teaching each one my way of working while checking on the quality of their work…this was all new to me. I had to wake up early each morning to prepare everyone’s tasks, make sure the studio is comfortable for everyone, order material, and more. I am a night owl, I never knew this would be such a challenge. In the end, we worked this way for 9 months and the end result was so great.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I’m not a computer person, but I can find ways to do things. I remember I first started connecting to mosaic artists with emails and searches, then a Yahoo group started. After that Facebook was the hit. I started having so many friends from everywhere. I have to say that mosaic artists are really humble and like to help each other. My work was noticed more and more and I got to learn about new artists and their work that I really admire. After that I started using LinkedIn, but in 2017, I remember my daughter came to me and said: “You have to open an Instagram account, Mom.” So I did.

I think each one of those has its own audience and I like to be connected to all of them. Social media was the way for me to meet and get close to many artists around the globe and that encouraged me to start traveling and teaching in studios. It helped me meet and work with all of these amazing artists I met online!

I try to answer all questions and help as much possible, check on new works and encourage beginners.
I try to post photos of my art, shows, my traveling adventures, workshops and my work in progress. Students and curious audiences love my casting, revealing, grouting and other videos. (Check my pages to see what I mean!)

www.facebook.com/carolechoucairoueijanart
www.instagram.com/carolechoucairoueijan

Contact Info:

• Website: www.FineArtbyCarole.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/carolechoucairoueijan
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/carolechoucairoueijanart
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carole-choucair-oueijan

Image Credits
Carole Choucair Oueijan